New higher education chief faces budget headaches

BATON ROUGE - On the job for only a week, Louisiana's newest higher education commissioner, Joseph Rallo, quickly got hit with the grim reality of the state's budget.

Gov. Bobby Jindal's administration has given Rallo and state college system leaders a troubling figure, warning them the governor's budget proposal may strip as much as $300 million in state financing from campuses next year.

But Rallo - with a background in both military leadership and higher education management - doesn't seem rattled.

He's asked his staff and college leaders to drum up ideas that could generate new dollars for campuses, to help offset whatever cuts may come in the fiscal year that begins in July. Rallo says he's optimistic higher education leaders can get creative, saying they're in the "idea business" for a living.